In Chains
by Temporary Permanent
Summary: A fanfic one-shot about Nah and Morgan. Inspired by Juniper's Knot by Dischan. (No, that's a visual novel on the Ipod not a fanfic.) The setting is not parallel to the canon in any form.


**Okay, so I SHOULD be finishing Festive Aftermath and Love By Every Other Name (which by the way have been getting more favorites each day :D)...but if any of you follow fe13drabbles (which you should) on Tumblr, then you know I post on Submission Sunday. I loved this one so much that I wanted to post it as a one-shot.**

**Also, side note. This is my first fanfic that doesn't star Avatar, Lissa, or Owain or include them. So...yeah...row row...fight da powah.**

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_It's cold..._

I thought feeling the wet ground as I awoke. Stranded rays of light made their way through the cracks and holes in what remained of the roof. They were strong enough to wake me when they struck my eyelids, but not plentiful enough to warm me.

I was used to it. Who knows how long I've been here. Months? Years? Centuries, maybe? Trapped by these damn chains.

I managed to pull my tired self-up, just to plop right back down on the ground. I brought my knees to my face and sat quietly. I reached for a piece of mirror that I had found in the stone room. I looked at the skinny being in the reflection.

"My name is Nah." I said aloud, as if someone were going to respond. When no one did, I sighed.

_Moms always said have hope..._

Every day I would listen to my surroundings. I listened for anything, or anyone that could help me. It was a way to keep hopefully, but grew more disheartening each day.

_What else could I do?_

The dilapidated room held rotted wood and crumbling rock. The daylight revealed burn marks on the inside where the rain couldn't reach. The dirt here was rugged and nasty due to the lack of life. Well, there was me.

_Did I count? Could I justify this as a life?_

Suddenly, I heard a noise. It wasn't a passing bird, but a voice, an actual person. Almost too excitedly, I jumped out to scream for their attention. However, I was quickly forced back to the ground by the chains. My purple pigtails danced and flopped with my dress as I crashed, and the chains jingled a rusty tune from the force. As I landed, I came to a quick realization.

_Humans...they were the ones that imprisoned me here..._

I resumed my original withdrawn position and began to sob at my newly found hope crushed as easily as it had arrived. Then my ears began to twitch to more noise.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" the voice called.

The tone was a little uneasy, no doubt the loud thud and rattling chains caught them off guard. I quickly covered my mouth with my hands. I was so caught up in my self-pity that I forgot about the person.

I could hear footsteps growing louder and louder. I quickly scanned the remains of the room for a place to hide. There was a part of a wall, but it was out of reach because of the chains.

Panicking, I grabbed the red cape beside me. After using it as a blanket, I knew it would cover me if I curled into a ball.

I quickly threw the apparel over my curled body, and quieted my breathing.

I sat there for Naga knows how long listening to the footsteps grow closer. Eventually, the noise ceased. I began to rise up, thinking they had left, when I heard the voice even closer than before.

"What are you doing?" the person asked.

I jumped out from the blanket in fear, letting out a scared yelp. My jump caused the person to jump back similarly. He landed on his butt and groaned after the impact.

I quickly back to the wall where the chains were planted. I scowled while examining the person. It was a male; he had bright orange hair and an odd purple jacket.

"S-Stay...stay...b-back..." I muttered weakly.

The boy, taking in the comment, got up and waved his hands slowly as if to calm me.

"S-Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you. I just heard a noise and got curious..." he admitted.

Untrustingly, I backed further into the wall, clenching the cape in my hands even tighter.

The boy stared at my response. His eyes carried from my face to my arms. He noticed that the weak, feeble twigs chained to the wall. He gulped before speaking up again.

"H-hey...are you stuck?" the boy asked.

I sneered at him.

"No," I said regaining my voice, "I just thought it would be fun to lock myself up."

The boy looked at me oddly. "Why would that be fun?" he asked stupidly.

"Are you daft?!" I yelled jumping up and pointing. However, the small length of the chains caught me and quickly pulled me back to the ground.

The boy looked at me with a furrowed brow as I rubbed my back from the fall.

"Oh...you were kidding..." the boy realized sighing at his own comment.

After that it was silent. He sat there lost in thought, and I sat quietly in anticipation of his next move. Suddenly, he jumped onto his feet letting out a seemingly optimistic "Okay!"

He looked to me with a healthy glow, his gold eyes more alive than mine had been in years.

"Hey, what's your name? Will you tell me?" the boy asked innocently.

I looked away from his eyes. They were too happy, too optimistic. Plus, I didn't want to get close to some stranger; especially, not a human.

"Hello? Hey, did you hear me?!" He shouted taking my silence as not hearing him.

I remained silent still.

The boy sighed. He turned and began to walk away. Realizing that he was leaving, my legs began to move forward.

_No…_

_No...don't...don't leave!_

I continued to follow after him until the chains forced me to remain stationary. Hopelessly, I reached out my arms, hoping to grab his cloak.

_I wasn't quick enough..._

As I realized my situation, I covered my eyes with my palms and cried in defeat. Even if he was human, even if he was a stranger, he was there. He was the first person I've seen in so long.

_Why? Why did I have to scare him away?!_

I rolled on to my side and continued to sob. I wanted him to turn around, to come back and say something stupid. Anything was okay, as long as...as long as...

_I didn't have to be alone..._

I was so caught up in my crying that I didn't notice the sound of footsteps entering again. My attention was finally caught when the shackles on my arms dropped to the ground. I looked up to see the boy hovering over me with several lock picks in one hand. The other was extended out to me.

I slowly took hold of his hand, as if I were afraid of waking up from this dream. He picked me up and set me on my feet. I lost balance for a second, but caught myself on the remains of a wall.

I looked back at the boy who was smiling at me.

"My name is Morgan." He greeted with a chuckle.

I quickly ran embraced the boy. I threw my arms around his neck and held on as tight as I could. After a few minutes, I finally released the startled boy, who fell onto the ground in shock at my reaction. I squatted down and looked him in the eyes, smiling the best I could.

"My name is Nah." I replied.

_It felt good to be able to say that, and have some to hear it._


End file.
